This was not exactly how Jaune foresaw this day going. But, he thought, as Weiss's legs snaked around him, he didn't exactly mind.

He had been so disgusted with himself, the last time. By any account, this couldn't be a very good idea. Back then, he could at least chalk up his poor choices to fresh grief and alcohol. How exactly was he supposed to justify this?

She licked around the shell of his ear.

Well.

Fuck.

Jaune had never been very good at risk assesment.

It was simple, to lose himself in this. Ridiculously so. Jaune had always thought he'd be too nervous, too bad at it, too afraid of being bad at it. In reality, it was all preternaturally straight-forward. He could just slip into this state, and this weird, primal thing took over completely. He knew what to do, sort of. He knew what he wanted, for sure. Which didn't freak him out too much, or anything. Surrendering control was all well and good when he was completely miserable, but now that he was even marginally okay… well, it was different.

He didn't want to lose himself in Weiss. That wasn't fair. To either of them. But he still wanted to be with her like this, despite his better judgement.

Maybe it could be different this time. If he wanted it and she wanted it, shouldn't it all work out? Why couldn't they have this, after everything? Why shouldn't they?

Jaune looked at her, cupped her face in his hand. Blue eyes. Brighter than his. Her eyelashes were white, just like her hair. How had he never noticed? Jaune ran a thumb over her cheekbone and Weiss shuddered, drew away.

"Sorry!" he said instantaneously, jutting his hand away. "What did I do?"

"Nothing, it's…" Weiss was making a strangely pained expression he couldn't quite place. "it's just my scar. I was surprised, is all."

"Oh!" Jaune's face was flushed. He hadn't thought about that. He'd never even know the Weiss without a scar. "Does it hurt? I'm sorry."

"Not anymore."

Jaune wasn't sure quite what to do. He settled on kissing her forehead. Then, the tip her nose, her lips, the raised scar tissue of her cheekbone.

"Was— was that okay?"

"Yes," she said, ducking into the crook of his neck. Jaune saw she was smiling. Weiss' voice came quietly, muffled by the sound of her mouth against him. "No more talking."

He might've opened his mouth to protest this, but his words caught in his throat, as Weiss worked her icy fingers under the hem of his shirt.

"W-weiss?" he asked, as she first peeled off his sweatshirt, then the shirt underneath. "Is this another veiled criticism of my clothing choices?"

"I resent the implication that I would ever veil my criticisms." Weiss said with a smirk, raking her nails over his chest.

"What," Jaune asked, trying to steel himself from shivering at her touch, "marking your territory now?"

Weiss shot him a glance. "Hardly."

"Then what?" he said between kisses, working open the buttons of her jacket.

"Mmmm." Weiss came up for air, but didn't pull away. Their foreheads touched. "Maybe I'm just making sure you're real."

Something hot and heady and overpowering thrummed through his veins at her words. Overcome, Jaune picked her up off the desk with one arm, covering his mouth with hers when she shrieked.

"Try to restrain yourself if you can, Miss Schnee. This is a work environment."

Weiss grappled onto him ridiculously, hands around his neck, legs around his waist. She was scowling at him petulantly.

"I— I'll restrain you," Weiss said, hushed, sputtering, "you lumbering, moronic— "

"Don't make promises you can't keep." Jaune said, laughing, laying her down as gently as he could manage with her nails digging into the meat of his shoulder.

Jaune was dumbstruck by the image of Weiss underneath him. He motioned to take over where he left off, removing her jacket, but found himself completely unable to move. Like he'd break her. Like he'd ruin it.

With a sly little grin, Weiss sat up, pushed him down forcefully, taking advantage of his momentary reverie. She was too distracting by half to give him any chance of gaining the upper hand. Weiss shrugged off the jacket. Started undressing herself, button by button, tortuously slow.

"You're stealing my move," Jaune said weakly, hoping it came out more joking than desperate. An unfamiliar urgency came over him, increasing tenfold with each button that popped open. His mouth went dry and his brain went blank.

"Then move faster."

Jaune decided to stop thinking altogether.

"Um, ow. No teeth."

"Not even a little teeth?"

"...less teeth."

"This is— "

"What did we say about talking?"

"I didn't say— "

"We meaning me."

"How does that even make— "

"I retain the right to use the royal we."

"If I call you 'your majesty' do I get to finish a sentence?"

"I'll allow it on a probationary basis."

"This is good, right?"

"I seem to recall being promised a 'your majesty'."

"Weiss. I said, is this good?"

"That's not even what you— oh!"

"Tell me."

"Satis— oh, fuck. S-satisfactory."

"What was that?"

"Oh, shut up."

"Gladly."

"Is this actually happening?"

"I think so. I hope so."

"Okay. Good. Good."

"Your hair's all messed up."

"Who's fault is that?"

"Ha. Let me fix it, then."

"You're just going to make knots."

"Seven older sisters."

"Hm. Point taken."

"I'm gonna do a braid."

"Sure, sure. Braid away."

"Jaune... was I asleep?"

"For like, ten minutes."

"Oh. I didn't mean to…"

"Shh. That's okay. It's late."

"Nope. It's early."

"That too. Go back to sleep, Weiss."

For a moment, when Weiss was more asleep than awake, she hadn't remember what had happened or where she was or even who's arm it was, curled protectively around her. But strangely, she hadn't really minded. Just another dream. But a good one, this time.

It was Jaune. Jaune, who was still asleep. The sunlight beaming through the shutters had been enough to drag Weiss into consciousness, but he didn't seem to have suffered the same fate.

Even as she regained her senses, nothing made sense. Apparently, they had fallen asleep right there on the floor. Nestled between her filing cabinet and her desk. Unbelievable. For once, Weiss thankful for such an out-of-the-way office.

As unfathomable as her night had been, her day was looking even stranger.

Should she get up? Go back to her father's house? There was the matter of the AK-200s who were programmed to follow her from the Corporate Headquarters back to the Schnee Manor. They weren't complex enough to report to her father that she had never returned home. Well, she assumed. Weiss felt confident she could lie her way out of it, should her father find out somehow.

But then there was Jaune. Weiss couldn't just leave him on the floor of her office. There was the option of waking him, but she hated to do it. Weiss sighed. A little too loudly, as Jaune started stirring slightly, tightening his grip on her waist. It would be best if she could just fall back asleep, she thought, closing her eyes, trying to lose herself in it. He was warm and his arms were ridiculously strong. She tried to make it last. But to no avail: Weiss had never felt so horrifically awake in her life.

She toyed with the idea of finishing the filing Jaune had distracted her from in the first place. But even the promise of productivity wasn't enough to sway her. Weiss stayed there on the floor in his arms, stiff-backed and much too awake. (Admittedly, it was still pretty good.)

After a while, Jaune shifted. Weiss remained motionless, pretended she was still asleep. She wanted to be the girl was sleeping prettily, not the girl frozen with anxiety and fussing about office work. Which was an utterly ridiculous thought to be having at all. What if he just got up and left with her lying there? Not that she exactly had a problem with that, but—

Jaune kissed her bare shoulder.

"Hey, you."

Huh.

Was that how it was done?

Weiss yawned showily, feeling idiotic as she did so. As if he would think to accuse her of pretending to be asleep.

"Morning," she said, turning to face him. Where did they go from here?

"We should go, right?"

"We?" she asked blearily, only able to focus on the patterns Jaune was tracing on her skin.

"Is there something you need from your house, or what?" Jaune asked, and her stomach dropped.

Here it goes.

"What are you talking about?" Weiss knew now, of course, what he meant. Perhaps feigning misunderstanding would be enough for him to get the hint.

"Haven!" he said, standing up energetically. "Well, Vale first, to get Ren and Nora. And Patch, to meet up with Ruby. But then, Haven."

Weiss was a complete and utter idiot. He'd had clear expectations, and she ignored them. Why?

What was it, exactly, that made her act this way?

Was it really just because it was easy? To see what she wanted and take it, no questions asked, no thought given?

Spoiled brat.

Needy.

Desperate.

Why did she want so badly for someone, anyone to need her?

Weiss pushed it all aside. Mistakes had been made. But she could still mitigate the damage. Jaune would be okay. She'd misled him, but he'd get over it. She could smooth this over.

She stood, collecting the clothes so carelessly shunted off the night before.

"I can't go with you to Haven, Jaune," Weiss said, exhaling deeply. "I'm sorry."

"Wait, what?" Jaune was still smiling. It was only a matter of time. "That's not— you said you were going to come with me!"

"I said no such thing." Weiss could hear how icy and patrician she sounded, but somehow couldn't help it. The more nervous she was, the more haughty she came across.

"Wait, what? You're being serious? Come the fuck on, Weiss!"

The smile was gone. He was yelling again.

Her eyes flicked to the door. It was much too early for any of the other employees to be there, but the recklessness of their encounter was hitting her hard. They shouldn't have been able to get away with that. It had been untouchable, timeless, apart from it all. Or so Weiss had let herself pretend. Instant gratification was for children and simpletons, and she was neither.

"Language, Mr. Arc." Weiss drawled sardonically, hoping to soften things the way they usually did.

But Jaune was not having it, not this time. "Don't. Do not."

Weiss changed tactics, tried injecting some authority into her voice. "What were you planning to do? Wave your sword around at my father's battalion of Paladins?"

His eyebrows shot up. "He's guarding you? With Paladins?"

"Of course," Weiss said bitterly, though it was only the Knights that watched over her directly. Her father did own Paladins, in fairness. She began combing out her braid with jittering fingers, needing to conceal her anxiety in some way. "Father guards all his possessions."

Jaune shook his head, his too-long hair shaking wildly.

"Why didn't you— I don't get it. Why did you say you'd come with me?"

"When did I— "

"Oh, convince me, Jaune, you need me, Jaune," he spat. "You must really think I'm an idiot."

"I think you're being an idiot right now, yes," Weiss said, through gritted teeth.

"What did this mean to you?" Jaune asked, seeking eye contact desperately. He motioned to touch her shoulder. She shrugged it away.

Breathe. Weiss had to remember to— he was so angry with her. She didn't blame him. Veins began pulsing in the back of her head. Couldn't breathe, couldn't— What had it meant to her? Why? Weiss dug her nails into her palms, trying to keep her racing thoughts at bay. How did she think this could be simple? How could she think someone understood what she wanted?

Jaune couldn't tell how she felt because she wasn't willing to show him. To show anyone. She had was no one to blame but herself. All her fault.

"Was it supposed to mean something?" she said coldly, because it was the only thing she could think to say. It was just second nature; when Weiss saw an opening, she struck.

Jaune gaped, looking at her like she'd slapped him. Shook his head again, as though through sheer force he could change her words.

"You let me think you were going to come with me. You did."

"Learn to recognize flirty banter, Jaune," she said dryly, "It'll serve you well."

"That wasn't flirty banter!" He was shouting at her, and all she could think at first was how very much wanted to crawl up somewhere far away and stay there forever.

But Weiss just raised an eyebrow. Jaune could pretend he'd had no part in how the night progressed, but she didn't have to humor it. He couldn't intimidate her like that. She would not allow it.

"We were having a conversation," he protested lamely.

"Yeah," Weiss said, shrugging, "and then we weren't. I don't even have my weapon. It's locked up. I couldn't go even if I wanted to."

"If you wanted— I don't understand. What was the point of this, then?" Jaune swallowed, but it didn't hide the strain in his voice. "If you never wanted to be with me?"

"Be with you?" Weiss just barely choked out, truly blindsided. "What are you even talking about?"

"I could get you out of here, if you'd just let me!" Jaune said suddenly, flushing, practically growling. "You could get a new weapon! It was going to be okay! We were going to fix everything!"

"What, in Haven?" she asked, incredulously, "Are you joking? That's a wild goose chase if I've heard one."

"Ruby's uncle— " he began, slowly, as if speaking to a child.

"Yes, Jaune, I'm not simple." Weiss snapped, "That incompetent lush 'let something slip' and you want everyone to put their lives on hold to investigate. I follow. What I'm having difficulty grasping is what you think that's going to solve."

"We have to start somewhere!"

"Yes! Sure! But we don't have to start there! You think slaying Grimm is hard? You're dealing with a conspiracy that high-ranking government officials can barely wrap their heads around. And you think the key to all that is just going to be waiting for you, gift-wrapped in Haven?" Her voice was shaking now. This had started as an apology, hadn't it? He was so utterly dense. Weiss couldn't help it, this anger that was coming to a boil.

"What do you suggest we do, since you're so smart?" Jaune sniped, barbed with sarcasm. But something in his expression told her he really wanted to know. Like it could be so simple. A slight change of plans. Weiss held back a sigh. Jaune was forever looking for the easy way out. Something quick and bold, fit for heroic retellings. She wasn't going to be able to tell him what he wanted to hear. And he'd resent her for it.

"Best case scenario," Weiss started calmly, "you find out one piece of usable information." Jaune opened his mouth to speak, but Weiss raised a finger. "Or you could discover nothing at all. If I were to come with you, in that case, I would have severed ties with my father for no reason. That isn't a risk I'm willing to take."

"Severed ties?!" Jaune shouted. So much for her calm delivery. "Weiss, he practically kidnapped you!"

Weiss was growing truly impatient. Time to go for the jugular. End this quickly.

"Just because you have no respect for your family doesn't mean I have none for mine!"

"Where do you get— whatever." Jaune sighed, "Don't try to turn this around on me."

Weiss knew she was being unfair. But Jaune was so unwilling to listen to her, and far too willing to stumble blindly into a fight. It was infuriating. If Jaune wanted a fight, she would win it. Whether she believed in what she was saying or not.

"Since when are you so interested in respect?" he said, suddenly. "Were you even speaking to your father before he came and got you?"

Weiss flushed. She wasn't expecting that. "It isn't any of your business!"

"I don't care if it's my business or not!" said Jaune, through clenched teeth. "What happened to you here? You acted like you were being dragged off against your will and now, what, you just got used to it? You remembered how nice it is to live in a palace, is that it?"

"Does this look like a palace to you?" Weiss asked, gesturing to their bleak institutional surroundings. "I'm working here, Jaune. Maybe you're just confused, since you've never done an honest day's work in your life."

Jaune scoffed. "You should talk, heiress."

"Yes! I'm an heiress!" she said, hysterically. What, did he really think he was touching a nerve? By naming the only part of her identity that was public record?

"Which means," Weiss went on, slowly, "I have influence here, if I play my cards right. I have a plan. I can't just go off and— you talk such a big game about helping people, but what have you actually done? There's a reason they test applicants for combat school, you know. What makes you think you'd do more harm than good? You're a liability."

Again, Weiss made the easy jabs. She started off well intentioned, but why should she try? Jaune wasn't going to listen to her. He was never going to care what she thought. Why shouldn't she make him hurt like she hurt?

Because it isn't his fault you're hurting. Because you know he's well-intentioned.

No.

Intentions weren't enough.

"Why are you acting like this?" Jaune pleaded, not knowing she was asking herself the very same thing. "What's the game plan here, try to hurt my feelings so I forget that I actually care about what happens to you?"

"This may come as a shock, Jaune, but not everything I say and do is about you!" Weiss was yelling now.

"How was having sex with me not about me?" Jaune demanded, defensive, embarrassed.

"Is that an actual question?" Weiss could almost laugh. "Like, am I meant to explain that to you?"

"I don't get why you're attacking me! Suddenly I'm such a bad guy for wanting to help you?"

How horrible, not to be the hero for once.

"I never asked for your help!" As if she should have to point this out. Like she was just a player in the story of Jaune. A defective damsel who wouldn't just shut up, roll over, and let herself be saved.

"You need my help!" Jaune snapped, smacking the wall. "I don't get why you're doing this! Everything would be okay if we just left and went to Haven together."

"Why I'm doing what, exactly?" Weiss asked, unable to stop herself from wheedling him further. "As if you were ever such an expert on me? What do you even know about me?"

"I don't know!" Jaune threw up his hands, exasperated, incredulous. "How am I even supposed to answer that?"

"You're the one who has grand ideas about us riding off into the sunset, apparently! And you can't even say what you know about me?" Her voice was raw. It hurt. It hurt and it shouldn't, because it was her own doing. Weiss hated that she expected an answer from him. Weiss hated him for not knowing she was giving him an opening. Weiss hated him for not being able to pass her tests, hated herself for having to test him at all.

"You said that, not me!" Jaune shouted, bringing her back to reality.

"I didn't hear you denying it." Deny it. Why wouldn't he just deny it?

"What am I supposed to-" Say you know me. Say you want to know me, at least.

"I'm proving a point!" Weiss said, swallowing hard. She would not cry. He wasn't worth it. "You think you're in love with me or something all of a sudden? How does that make sense? How am I supposed to stake everything on that?"

"I am not in love with you." Jaune said caustically. As if he was offended by the very idea.

"Yes! That's what I'm saying! So why should I go with you? Maybe you'd feel better if you had someone to swoop in and save, but I don't need it. I appreciate you telling me about Ruby, and letting me know what your plans are, but I can't be a part of that right now." Weiss was not going to cry.

"What about Beacon? What about your team?"

Weiss wondered idly if he'd still be satisfied with himself if she gave into this guilt-trip. He was so transparent.

"You, Ren, Nora, and Ruby? That's not my team." Weiss said disparagingly. "And what Yang? You didn't pass judgement on her for staying out of this!"

"Yang was injured!" Jaune protested.

"You know that isn't what's holding her back! You said as much yourself! And Blake! Blake is gone too, if you hadn't noticed. It isn't my team that's getting put back together. It's yours."

"Ruby isn't— "

"I seem to recall you were missing a member." Weiss said coolly, trying not to look at him. Feeling like there were nails gouging at the inside of her head. She said it anyway.

Jaune looked at her with more sadness than she had expected, somehow.

"Don't even go there, Weiss."

"What, is Ruby supposed to be the half of Pyrrha that's the real leader, and I'm the half that's your girlfriend?" It felt true to say and horrible to hear and still so satisfying that she could not stop.

"You don't know what the fuck you're talking about."

She couldn't look at him.

"Don't I? Am I really so off-base?" Her heart was in her throat. Stop. Stop. Why couldn't she just leave it alone?

"I cannot believe you're doing this." he said quietly, bitterly.

"I thought we had covered that." Weiss was shaking. "The part where you don't know anything about me."

"I'm not trying to replace her." Jaune said it like he was trying to convince himself. "I would never do that."

"What, you won't even say her name now?" Weiss snapped. Unbelievable.

"You're the one who shouldn't be saying her name!" Jaune said, blowing up at last. Just what she wanted. It would be over soon. "You're not half the person she was!"

It hurt more than she thought it would.

Weiss didn't flinch. He wouldn't get that satisfaction.

"Who's trying to hurt who's feelings now?" she said lightly, snark doing a poor job of covering the hurt in her voice.

"You started it." Jaune said, sulkily. Such a child.

"I get it," Weiss said with a dismissive shrug, "You were in love her."

Jaune's jaw clenched. Her bluff had paid off.

"You— " Jaune was a different kind of angry now. Controlled. Unsettling. "You don't get jackshit. You have no idea what it's like. She's gone. She kissed me once. And then she was dead."

The air was knocked out of her lungs.

So that's what had happened.

It didn't make her feel any better, knowing. She just felt gut-punched. Which only made her feel selfish and sick, like she was making Pyrrha's death all about her. It wasn't fair of her to feel like this.

Weiss couldn't help it. Three days after Pyrrha died, they were together. Together being a generous word. How could she have thought…

Just a warm body.

Of course that's what she was to him. But how could she blame him, really? Wasn't that what Jaune was to her?

No.

At least Weiss wasn't pretending he was a ghost. Even if he could be anyone, which she wasn't even sure was true… at least she wasn't closing her eyes, picturing someone else.

Weiss had thought it had been different last night. It had felt like he saw her.

She was a replacement. She was nothing to him. He had just gotten better at hiding it.

"Maybe I don't," Weiss admitted shakily, "But this isn't going to bring her back."

Meaning, I am not your dead girlfriend. Meaning, I refuse to make decisions just to accommodate your guilt.

Jaune stared at her blankly. As if the thought hadn't occurred to him. Weiss saw right through him. And he didn't see her at all.

It wasn't his fault, but she hated him for it, all the same.

"We can't bring anyone back," he started, cautiously, "But we have to keep going. We can do something… new."

"Can we?" Weiss asked, voice breaking hysterically. She laughed. "Maybe we could! Maybe I would, even, if I thought for one second that you actually wanted to."

Jaune's fists were clenched, white knuckle.

"Answer me one question then, Weiss. Since you obviously think you can read my mind."

Weiss just looked at him, stricken. Was she just as oblivious as he was? What was it she wasn't seeing?

No, no. She was right. She had to be.

"How the fuck did you think this was going to go?"

The same question she'd been asking herself, of course. The only answer came to her, simply.

"I don't know. I didn't think about it. At all."

It was his turn to laugh cruelly. "And I'm the selfish one."

"You don't have some kind of monopoly on selfishness, Jaune." Weiss snapped, with an anger she didn't quite feel.

Jaune made no motion to leave, still standing there, fists trembling in vain.

Once last thing. Weiss still itched with it, the need to yell and demand and

explain. She wanted desperately to hurt him. But even Weiss could see she had done enough damage. One last chance to smooth it over. Do something right.

"I still think…" she took a deep breath. "You did the right thing, coming to see me."

Because I needed to know Ruby was okay. Because I was lonely. Because I needed to feel like I wasn't forgotten.

Thank you, for that.

The important things remained unsaid, as always. Where they couldn't be used against her.

Jaune laughed, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I don't really care what you think, Weiss."

"Yeah," Weiss said, smiling despite herself, "I know."

Jaune was leaving again. Weiss was alone again.

And it was quiet, after that.